Golf Preparation - Step Breathing
One of the most effective changes that a golfer can bring
into his or her game is called step-breathing. The benefits
of using step-breathing are many. You give yourself a solid,
focused mental and physical place from which to hit your
shots or make even the longer putts, you have a time to find
the best level of mental arousal, and you gain more control
over the pace of your game.
Another advantage of taking the time and centering yourself
with step-breathing is that it places a nice dividing line
between the thinking part of your golf swing and the hitting
part. The old saying is; “The thinking must stop before the
hitting begins.”
You begin to learn step-breathing at home. You simply sit in
a comfortable chair and imagine a side view of a set of
stairs. When each stair drops down, this is your exhale.
When the stair is flat, and horizontal to the ground, this
is your inhale.
In normal breathing you breathe in and out, never really
moving your lower body. If you were to graph a normal breath
it would be a “U” shaped curve. It would go down on your
exhale and back up on you inhale. Your breathing would be
one long line of “U” shaped curves. This is fine for taking
in oxygen, but not very effective for centering your mind
and body to maximize your golf game.
You continue your training by practicing lowering your
center of breathing from high in your chest, near your
throat, down to your lowest point in your stomach. Following
your six or seven steps down into your body, remember the
exhales are when you drop a little further down and the
inhales are the flat part of the step. On the inhale you do
not go down, but you also do not go up, as in a normal
breath.
Once the breathing is very low in your body, practice
keeping it there for four or five breaths. Then let it
gradually come back up. If you practice this exercise one
hundred to one hundred and fifty times you will begin to
find that the breathing begins to anticipate your lowered
center of breathing and your breathing will automatically
drop on the second or third breath.
When this happens you have learned the ability of using the
short form of step-breathing. The short form of
step-breathing utilizes this learned reaction and allows you
to become fully centered using only two or three breaths. On
the course, or even in practice, you will need to use this
short form of step-breathing so that you can quickly get
centered and ready to take the swing or the putt.
After you have learned the short form of step-breathing you
are ready to make it part of your pre-shot routine. After
you have planned your shot, addressed the ball, recalled a
successful shot like the one you are about to make, you can
use the step-breathing to end your thinking, relax your
body, lock your expectation on the exact target and be
externally focused on the ball. No thinking, no worrying, no
wobbling of focus and fully ready to put the ball where you
want it.
Now that you can center your breathing, begin to use it on
the practice tee. Practice your pre-shot routine before each
shot. Did you think the practice tee was only for physical
practice? How will you find your best game if you only
practice the physical aspects of your game?
Establish your exact target, complete the step-breathing
short form, focus on the ball and let yourself hit the ball.
By practicing the entire routine you will soon be very
comfortable with the procedure and your scores will reflect
your new level of mental and physical control.
Do not try to utilize this or any other mental training
technique until you have understood the theory and concepts
involved and practiced the mental technique to the extent
that you are able to fully use the procedure. Then bring it
into competition after you have used it in practice several
times. There are no short cuts to improving your game. You
need to do the work and do it in the right order before you
can really enjoy the higher level of play it brings.
Start practicing your long form of step-breathing today and
soon you will have the mental control you need to play your
best game.
J. Cavell is an amateur golfer from New Jersey who loves the
game of golf. Like others, he wants to improve his golf game
to make it a more pleasurable experience. He is a valued
contributor to http://www.Authority4Golf.com Marketing tips
can be found at http://www.tips4success.biz
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